Red
by DanaKMulder51
Summary: What should have been a nice night out turns into chaos for Mulder and Scully. Not related to any episodes, a story of its own. My first fanfiction I have posted so be kind:-) Work in Progress:0) Follow for updates as I find time to post:0)
1. Chapter 1

Red…. When she saw the dress in the storefront she knew she had to have it. It was a crimson colour, strapless, knee length. It's not like she needed it, or had any reason to wear it. Something about it just said to her she had to buy it. It had hung in her closet in a garment bag since that day she brought it home.

Red…. She was never one to buy bright coloured lipstick. But something about this shade of red, it drew her in. Fire it was called. It was bright, it was nothing like the usual pale pink or neutral colours she wore. But she knew just exactly what she would wear it with. So she bought it and put it in her vanity drawer, where it has sat untouched.

Red…. She was buried in a book, a classic, The Scarlet Letter. She had read this one over and over, the cover worn thin, the pages dog-eared. It had the faint smell of her mother's basement, probably where it had sat for years buried in a box of her stuff she left behind when she had moved out on her own. She was startled by the ring and the flash of red on her cellphone.

"Mulder, what's up?"

"Scully, it's me."

"I know. Caller ID, remember?"

There was a long pause

"Anyways Mulder, I'm busy. Did you need anything?"

"I was flipping through my papers on my desk and two tickets to this charity dinner fell out of a file. Apparently we are supposed to make a small appearance because it doesn't look good on the bureau if we don't. "

She remembered being asked a few weeks ago to attend by Skinner. Was that tonight? "What time?"

"Dinner is at 8. I can pick you up if you want"

"No, don't worry about it. I'll just meet you there"

Click. The line was dead. He was never one for phone conversations. She looked at her watch. 4:00. So she had two and a half hours to find something to wear, get ready, and be out the door if she was going to make it for dinner. She opened her closet door and knew exactly what she was going to wear.

The clock on her bedside table read 6:45, as she grabbed her heels, threw a shawl over her shoulder and headed out the door. She was going to have to pray for traffic to be on her side if she was going to make it in time.

Red…. The last thing she heard before everything went black was the sound of the tires on the red pickup truck skidding as it slammed on it breaks, before hitting her.

He was buried in paperwork. He almost wished he hadn't given her the day off, but after the week they had, she needed it.

"Scully, go home, get some sleep and take tomorrow off. I can handle things here. I'm just going to be organizing and doing much needed paperwork"

"Mulder are you sure?" She looked up at him overtop of a red file folder.

"Take tomorrow off, go get your hair done, or whatever it is girls do these days" he said with a laugh.

"Well, if you need anything, you know where to find me" she stood up, grabbed her coat and walked out of the office. She was a little too eager to leave, he thought.

Now he was stuck with mountains of files to sort through by himself. It was a unusual slow Friday at the bureau, no one had even been down to ask him if he had a lunch order. Skinner hadn't even called down to yell at him.

There was a knock on the door. "Come in."

"Agent Mulder, where's Scully?"

"Gave her the day off. No idea where she is. Haven't heard from her since yesterday afternoon"

"Don't forget, the charity dinner tonight. And I will know if you don't show up, I have the pleasure of your company at my table. And Mulder, dress nice. "

Shit. He had forgotten all about the dinner tonight. He picked up his phone and dialed Scully's number. He was hoping to just leave a voicemail, but she picked up on the second ring.

"Hey Mulder, What's Up?"

"Scully, it's me"... shit, dumb answer. She knew it was him.

"I know, caller ID remember?"

Why did he always end up being so awkward on the phone with her.

"Anyways Mulder, I'm busy. Did you need anything?"

Of course she was busy. Did he actually think she was sitting around at home, alone and waiting for him to call probably had lunch plans with someone. Or something great like that. Maybe she had plans tonight, and he would have to go to this dinner alone. He stumbled through his words, vaguely remembering exactly why he called.

"What time?"

Shit, what time? He looked at the tickets. "Dinner is at 8. Want me to pick you up?"

"No, don't worry about it. I'll meet you there".

Shit. She didn't want to go. She felt obligated. Hang up now, before you make the situation more awkward. Mulder hung up the phone and looked at his watch. 3 hours to somehow pull together something respectable to wear. He grabbed his coat off the coat rack, and shut the office door.


	2. Chapter 2

Red…. He found a red tie hanging on his tie rack. Perfect. Red like her hair. Something about that colour. He was drawn to it. He held it up to a grey shirt. No, not right. White shirt? No. Still not the look he wanted. Black? Yes. That's perfect. He knew somewhere in the back of the closet in his spare room was the suit he had worn to a wedding once. He couldn't remember who got married, someone he went to school with. Hopefully the jacket and pants still fit. He didn't think he had gained much weight since he wore it last, but likely all the breakfast burritos from that place across the street were not helping his cause.

Red…. He reached into the pocket of the suit jacket and found a petal from a flower. A rose to be exact. Now he remembered the last time he wore this suit. The day they laid his mother to rest. He remembered that day too well. A flood of emotions came over him and he sat down on the bed. She stood with him, arm around him, comforting him as he said goodbye. That night, he sobbed until he couldn't breathe, until every bone in his body ached, until he threw up, until there was nothing left in him. She stayed with him. Held his hand. And when his eyes were too sore to stay open, she sat on the floor while he slept on the couch, holding his hand.

He hung the suit back in the closet. He couldn't bring himself to wear it. Not tonight. A knock on his door brought him out of his thoughts.

"Fox Mulder? I have a delivery for you".

He took a garment bag from the young man at the door and signed a slip. "Thanks." Inside was a note "Mulder, figured you would need some proper attire for tonight. I have seen what you wear. Skinner"

Mulder took the garment bag into the bathroom and began to change. How Skinner knew his size, he would never know. Guess that was one of those mysteries to file as unexplained. He looked at himself in the mirror. Regardless, Skinner knew how to dress a man. He looked at his watch, 6:45. He took one last look, grabbed his phone and the tickets and headed out the door.

Skinner looked at his watch. 7:45. Dinner was being served in 15 minutes. Neither of his agents were there. He should have already been three glasses in by now, but here he was, standing outside in the pissing rain waiting on them. Around the corner, he saw Mulder's car pull up. "I was beginning to think you two were a no-show." Mulder stepped out of the car alone. "Where's Agent Scully?"

"I offered her a ride but she said she was fine driving herself. She sounded busy when I called her, I think she had company over. She's not here yet?"

"No. I assumed the two of you were together, I mean neither of you have lives outside of your office. Let's get out of the rain and have a drink. No sense waiting out here for her. I see you got the suit."

"Yes, thank you Sir. I mean I was fine wearing my jeans and my Knicks shirt."

Skinner shot him that all too familiar look and he knew his joke was not received well. She would have found it funny. Or shot him an eye roll, either one.

The drinks were flowing freely, and dinner had been served. Mulder wasn't even aware that Scully hadn't shown up yet, until someone at the table leaned in and asked him where is partner was.

"Oh shit, is she still not here? That's not like her"

Mulder pulled out his phone to check for messaged. 2 missed called, neither of them were from her. Unknown numbers. Clearly she didn't have the balls to tell him over the phone she had plans and wasn't coming. Her loss. He ordered himself a glass of wine, her favorite red, and drank it down. His phone rang again, unknown number.

"Hello, you have reached the phone of Fox Mulder. I am too drunk to give a shit so kindly stop calling."

"Mr. Mulder? We have been trying to reach you. You are listed as the incase of emergency number on a Miss Dana Scully's medical files, is that correct?"

Mulder instantly sobered up."Yes, I am. Did something happen to her?"

"Sir, there has been an automobile accident. We would like to advise you to come here immediately."

Red….. The wine glass fell from his hand and shattered on the floor, droplets of red splattering. It was almost if in slow motion. He could hear sounds, but nothing registered. The sound of his heart pounding in his chest ringing in his ears.

"Sir, sir, are you there?"

He snapped back into reality. "Yes. I just need to call a cab and I will be there"

His face lost all colour. Skinner looked over at him. "Fox, you ok?"

"There's been an accident. I have to go."


	3. Chapter 3

Red….. It seemed like the cab hit every red light between the banquet hall and the hospital. His stomach dipped every time the cab stopped. The alcohol and the few contents of his dinner churning inside of him. Accident. That's all the person on the other line said. Was she alive? Was she ok? Was he coming to identify a body or to make a final call? After what seemed like an eternity the cab came to a halt.

Red… The emergency waiting room was full. Jammed with the sick, the injured. He was told to take a seat, someone would be right with him.

"But you don't understand. I got a call saying….."

"We are beyond capacity tonight, if you couldn't tell. Please sit down, someone will be out to get you shortly"

He sat, in a faded, stained chair. At its newest days it may have been a lovely shade of red. Probably a colour she would have chosen for curtains or towels or something like that. But now, it sat, old, worn, tired. Years of sweat, tears, blood, and who knows what else showing in the fabric. He felt a lot like the chair right now. Old, helpless, worn, tired.

Red….. The emergency room door opened and a young woman dressed in scrubs and a white coat entered.

"Mr. Fox Mulder?"

He stood up, all the colour drained from his face. "Right here"

"Come with me sir. "

He noticed a red stain on the doctor's coat. Was that her blood? The doctor didn't say a word to him, she just ushered him to an elevator. 7th floor. He knew this floor too well. He watched his mother slowly fade away on the 7th floor. Nothing good happens on the 7th floor.

He stepped out of the elevator. 'Right in here Mr. Mulder." The Doctor showed him into a room.

"I'm Dr Wright, head of surgery. There was an automobile accident tonight, as I am sure you were aware. Ms Scully was extracted from her vehicle. She is in critical condition. There was a significant amount of internal bleeding, as well as a significant head wound. She is currently in the ICU. We are awaiting an MRI to check her brain for any bleeds."

He didn't know if the doctor kept talking, because he couldn't hear a word she said. "Can I see her?"

"Mr. Mulder, I must warn you, she is in a very fragile state. She has not woken up since being brought in."

"Please, just let me see her."

"Alright. Follow me."

He stood in front of her door, took a deep breath, and stepped in.

Red…. He wasn't prepared. The sight took his breath away and he felt weak. There she lay, her hair matted with blood, her face nearly unrecognizable, a ventilator taking slow breaths for her. The heart monitor beating. The soft rise and fall of her chest. The colour in her face lost. The red medical bracelet on her wrist. He remembered she was allergic to some kind of medication. She had told him that on one of those long, overnight stakeouts years ago, when they ran out of things to talk about.

"So Mulder, any allergies?"

"What a random question! Cats and this one kind of fish. If I eat it, it's not a pretty sight. What about you?"

"Just erythromycin. My eyes swell up."

What he wouldn't give right now to be back there. Or anywhere but here. To take her away from this.

"Can she hear me?"

"We don't know. But she needs quiet. You are welcome to sit in here for a little while, but please don't make noise. We will come and get you when your time is up. We have some paperwork for you to sign and some decision that need to be made. As you are listed as her decision maker in the case of an emergency."

He sat down in the chair beside her bed, and put his head in his hands.


	4. Chapter 4

Red…. The rise and fall of her chest, the heartbeat on the monitor, the sound of the ventilator. He felt himself begin to slip into unconscious thoughts. Summer nights on his front porch swing, the red sky as the sun set. The long talks they shared. He remembered how she talked about that swing. Nights in hiding, away from everyone, it was the one thing that kept him going. Her dream of a house with a swing. Where they could watch the world. The day he finally finished it and hung it, he never thought she would leave. He found her asleep, wrapped up in a quilt, the swing softly swaying in the breeze. That swing held some of their greatest secrets and greatest fights.

"Why do you have to be so difficult? I just don't understand why you are so hellbent on locking yourself away in here. It's a beautiful day out, let's take a walk together. Maybe go into town for dinner, a movie. Anything. Mulder, you haven't left your desk in three days."

"Not right now Scully. I am on the verge of a major breakthrough in this research. If I can pinpoint this exact location of this crash sight, this may prove everything."

"Mulder, please. We left the X-Files. We left the bureau. We left this behind. This is supposed to be us now. I can't spend another lonely night in bed, in our bed, while you sit down here buried in this work. For what? There is no gain in this. To prove what Mulder? That aliens crashed here? What if they didn't? What if you never find that little piece of information you so drastically are searching for?"

"If you want to go, go. Nothing is keeping you here. You never did understand anyways."

"I didn't say anything about leaving! I just want to spend some time, together, somewhere other than this house. I want you to do something other than sit at this desk. Your dinner from yesterday sits untouched at the table. The dining table I ate dinner at alone, again. Dinner I spent hours preparing. You are wearing the same sweat stained shirt you have been wearing all week. You haven't showered. Mulder, this is no way to live!"

"Well, if you are so unhappy… Look Scully, I have work to do so please, we will talk about this later."

That was the last time they talked about it. Because that was the night she packed her bags.

Red…. He remembered hearing the front door creek shut. And then the silence. He heard the gravel spin under her tires as she drove off out of their driveway. On the swing was a note, written in red pen, "Here's the front door key. Dog food is in the closet. Laundry is in the dryer. Dana", the keys to the house taped inside. That was the night he tore the swing down.

A beep in the room brought him back to a conscious state. He lifted his head up and looked at her. Why? Why couldn't he have just told her how he felt? Why did he have to act like such an ass? What if she never woke up? The door opened and in walked a nurse.

"Mr. Mulder? I was asked to come and get you. The Doctor would like to go over some paperwork with you, and we need to prep Ms. Scully for her MRI"

Mulder stoop up and followed the nurse out into the hall, and into a private room. He knew what this room was for. He sat in a room just like this when they told him his mother was never coming out of her coma.

Red…. A file sat on a table across from him. SCULLY, DANA K was written in red on the tab. The Doctor sat across from him. She handed him a glass of water. He reluctantly took it and took a sip. He ran his fingers along the glass. She had picked out glasses just like this when they first moved into the house together.

"New glasses for a new start! Just think, we can sit on the front porch with glasses of wine and watch the sun set."

What he wouldn't trade to be sitting on the porch with a glass of wine right now.

"Mr. Mulder, you are listed on Dana's files as her emergency contact. In fact you are listed as the only person to contact. No listing of family at all. She also has you listed as her power of attorney, meaning we need to have you help us make a plan of action. As you know, she has originally had a DNR signed, but had that revoked several years back. Once we have the results back from her MRI and can see the brain activity we will have a much better picture as to if, or when she will begin to recover."

He wasn't really hearing the doctor's words. Everything was becoming a blur. How was he expected to make a decision about the treatment of the one person he can't live without?

"Nothing needs to be made today, we will let you go over all of the options and we can discuss things tomorrow."

"Am I able to stay with her?"

"For a little while, yes. Once she is back from her MRI. I know this must be hard for you. There is still a chance of full recovery, like I said, once we know the brain activity we will have a better picture. Why don't you go, grab yourself something to eat, I can have a nurse call you once she is back from her MRI"

"No, thank you. I am going to wait right here for her"


	5. Chapter 5

Red…. His eyes were bloodshot. He looked at his watch, 2:30am. Why was she not back yet? How long does an MRI take? His head felt heavy, his eyes burning from lack of sleep. Maybe he would just close his eyes for a second.

"All right, what do you think?"

He was back in his house, their house. They had just moved in. She had come home one day with two cans of paint and some painting tools from the hardware store, a huge smile on her face.

"About what?"

"This colour for the bedroom! I saw it and just fell in love. Soft blue, it's called Robin's Egg. It reminded me of that blue in that rock that sits on your desk. I figured we could paint this afternoon, and then take a roadtrip tomorrow for new bedding. Maybe stop at that diner we saw for lunch. It'll be fun"

He smiled. He loved when she got these great ideas and her passion came out. It wasn't very often that she was like this.

" Well, I don't know. I had a busy afternoon of reading this insanely dry book about the cold war and taking a nap planned, but your idea sounds much better".

They spent the afternoon painting, or well she spent the afternoon painting, he spent the afternoon attempting to paint. He was never really good at it.

Red…. His eyes burned as the sun began to push through the blinds on the windows of the waiting room. He sat up and rubbed his face. How long had he been asleep for? Why had no one came to wake him? He jumped out of his chair and ran down to her room. There was no change in her condition. She was still unconscious. He sat down in the chair beside her and took her hand in his. He watched the heart monitor, listened to the rise and fall of her chest. Even with her hair matted in blood, she was still beautiful. He brushed a strand of red hair out of her face. When the nurses came back, he was going to ask them to wash her face up for her.

Red…. The last thing she remembered was a red truck, slamming into her car. How many times had it flipped? She lost count. Her head hurt. Her arm hurt. Her chest felt heavy. She couldn't breathe. She reached for her phone. She needed him to know. If she didn't make it. She hit his name on her texting contacts and typed the words "I love…" She never finished her text. Everything went black.

Red…. When she opened her eyes, she was back in a familiar place. A place of her childhood. Her body felt light, painless. In front of her was a door. She knocked. A woman answered. "Dana." It was her mother. Inside the room was her sister, her father. Everyone she had lost over the years. So this must be what death is. On the table inside the room sat a bouquet of red flowers. Carnations. They were her favorite. The room had the faint smell of cinnamon buns and lavender, her two favorite scents. Her father was alive, laughing. He looked good, healthy. She wanted to step in the room, to be with them, but something stopped her. If this was heaven, why did a part of her feel like it was hell?

"Mom, I can't come in. I want to. I miss you. I miss dad. I need you. But my heart is telling me no."

"Dana, it's not your time. We're happy here. We're waiting. But we don't need you. He needs you. One day, one day you will come back to this door. And your heart will tell you it's time. And you will step in here and be with us. Today is not that day."

Red…. As he watched her he wondered where she was. Was she here with her body, in this room? Had she already left, her spirit taking hold somewhere else? Would he ever see her blue eyes open again? He looked down at her hand in his. She had painted her nails red. He recognized the colour. She had bought that same colour in a gas station variety store while they were on their way to Pennsylvania on a weekend away.

"I think it kind of looks like the colour of a hooker's nails" He teased her.

"Come on Mulder! It's a fun colour. Maybe I'll put it on my nails before dinner tonight. Maybe I'll take on a new name, I'll be Lolita, the quiet spanish girl, in town as a foreign exchange student."

"Scully, I can barely handle you, I don't think I could keep up with a Lolita. She sounds a little to feisty for me"

She didn't go to dinner as Lolita. Actually, he doesn't remember if they ever made it to dinner. That was one of those weekends they never left their hotel room. She had wanted to see the amish markets. He always promised her he would take her back there one day.


	6. Chapter 6

Red…. It was just a game of waiting now. Brain activity was normal in the MRI findings, her body just needed to heal. He hadn't left the hospital yet, sitting by her bed tirelessly. He was afraid she would wake up and be alone. The nurses had brought him a bag, red lettering on it, full of her belongings. A cell phone, her wallet, an envelope that contained her necklace and a ring she had been wearing. He remembered that ring.

"Scully, marry me."

"Mulder, you're drunk"

"I'm not drunk, I'm amazing!" They had drank 4 bottles of Chardonnay between the two of them. It had been a gift from an old colleague of her's to celebrate her birthday. He was far too intoxicated to drive home, she was far too intoxicated to care, and they were now laying on throw pillows on her living room floor staring up at her white popcorn ceiling.

"I'm serious. Marry me"

"How about we order pizza and call it love"

The next morning she woke up to a note and a bag on her dining room table and he was nowhere to be seen. The note read "happy birthday. See you at work. Mulder"

He had never seen her wear the ring. In all these years. He didn't even know she had even kept it. She walked into the office that day and never said a word and he had never asked.

Red…… three days had passed. The longest three days of his life. He had not left, had not showered. He was still wearing bits and pieces of the suit he had on when he came in. She began to make small gains in recovery. But he was afraid to leave incase she woke up. But the lack of sleep and lack of a decent meal was catching up to him and it was beyond a need to go home if only for a quick shower. His face was red from lack of sleep, his body running purely on terrible cafeteria coffee. He couldn't remember the last decent meal he had eaten. If she knew any of this she would have lectured him like she always did about taking care of himself. He would only be gone a few hours. He asked the nurses to give him a call if anything changed.

Red…. she woke up, gasping, unsure of where she was. Her throat hurt, her head hurt, everything hurt. Her eyes regained focus and the room gained shape. She was in a hospital room. But where? Or why? She reached for the red call button on the side of her bed and pushed it. Her arm became tangled in the array of wires sticking out of her gown. What the hell happened to her? Her chest hurt with every breath. Her eyes burned. Her head was pounding. She tried to lift it off the pillow but the weight was too much.she was sure even her hair hurt. Where was the nurse? Why was no one coming? She hit the call button again.

The water felt amazing against his skin. As much as he didn't want to leave the hospital, he needed to refresh. He stays in the shower letting the water run down his back a lot longer than he meant to. He remembered how much she hated this shower. The crack in the tile of the floor that always caught her foot. The leaky faucet that constantly dripped. The lack of space for her shampoo and body wash. How much had she complained over the years about it.

"Fuck! Mulder! Seriously!"

He found her in the bathroom. "What?"

"I can't handle this bathroom anymore. We don't need that third bedroom. We could just knock the wall down and make a bigger bathroom instead of having one that feels like I am showering in a closet! I have nowhere to move!"

Yeah, the bathroom wasn't the best feature of this house. When they had bought it it was on the list of the first things they wanted to renovate. But things got in the way. And it kept getting put off. And now, it was just him, so who needed a big bathroom. And now there was only one bottle of shampoo and one bottle of body wash and the shower held that just fine. But he did catch his foot in that cracked tile getting out, and he began to see why she swore and cursed every time she did it. Maybe it was time to fix that leaky faucet too. It couldn't be good for his water bill to have it leaking all the time.

He was pulling a sweatshirt on over his head when he heard his cellphone ring. He almost tripped over himself running to grab it.

"Hello?"

"Mr.Mulder? She's awake"


	7. Chapter 7

Red... he counted 8 red lights between his house and the hospital. Every light was against him it felt. Skinner had been so great at getting his car back to his place after he had left it at the charity dinner, so he didn't have to wait for a cab to get out to his place. The drive still felt like an enternity. What if she woke up and had no idea where she was? What if she woke up scared? That's exactly the reason he didn't want to leave. So many thoughts running through his head.

Red... He stood at the door, flowers in his hand. They weren't the prettiest, but it was the only ones he found between the 8th stoplight and the hospital. He couldn't even remember what her favorite flowers were. Or if she even liked flowers. When was the last time he had given them to her? When they were living in that unremarkable house together, in the beginning he used to always give her flowers. Usually ones he found out on his walks. Occasionally from that market down the road. He remembered, she always had them in that old wine bottle on their coffee table. The coffee table now long gone with the wine bottle. He burnt the table and smashed the bottle after she left. He couldn't handle the memory every time he looked at it, the last bunch of flowers dead inside. He looked at the pathetic bouquet in his hands. Red, half wilted, pathetic and sad. She deserved better then these. She deserved better than he had given her, or ever could give her. She deserved better than the unremarkable house, better than than the broken porch swing, the cracked bathroom tile, the bed that creaked every time he rolled over. She deserved more than a son they never knew, and she sure as hell deserved more than him.

He could just walk away now. She would never know he had been sitting here, watching her, holding her hand, possibly even praying to whoever was listening that she would wake up. He could just walk away, pack up his office, lock himself back in the house and live with his regrets.

Red... she was trying to make sense of what the drs were telling her. The last thing she remembered was the sound of tires skidding in the road. Her car had flipped 5 times, she thinks, she had lost count. But that was a week ago. She had been unconscious for a week. She was lucky to be alive they said. Bruised ribs, broken wrist, there was some internal bleeding, and several stitches in her head. Nothing that with time she wouldn't recover from. But she was going to need some sort of assistance if she was to go home in a few days. The dr asked if she had any family she could stay with. No, there was no one. A friend? The only person she really had was Mulder, but she didn't think he would be willing to take that on, after all, with their history and how she left it the last time they lived together. No, she wouldn't impose on him.

Red... He turned the doorknob and walked in. There she sat, in her bed, while the dr was giving her the rundown of her injuries.

"Do you have any family you can stay with for awhile,"

"No, unfortunately there is no one around here"

"A friend?"

"She can stay with me" the words came out of his mouth before he even realized what he was saying. He had a bad habit of that.


End file.
